IG Trading Review 2019

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IG Group Fast Facts

IG has been in the Forex and CFD business for 40 years. The company offers access to a comprehensive product line including forex, stock indices, individual equities, stock sectors, commodities, cryptocurrencies, bonds, and interest rates on a variety of professional-grade web-based and mobile trading platforms. IG is the largest CFD dealer (based on trading revenue) with the largest number of active financial spread betting accounts in the UK. Its size allows it to offer some of the lowest spreads and commissions in the industry. IG Group is an FTSE 250 Company with a 2.1 GBP billion market capitalization and more than 185,000 clients worldwide.

79% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should take into account whether or not you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. Between 74-89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs, regardless of provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.

pros

Breadth of Trading Products

IG offers access to more than 15,000 global markets

Low Cost

IG's size and trading volume allow it to offer some of the lowest spreads and commissions in the industry

Extended Hours and Sunday Trading

Trade extended hours on US equities and on Sundays in stock indices and cryptocurrencies

cons

Virtual Private Server (VPS) Carries a Fee

Clients with an account balance less than GBP 5,000 must pay a monthly fee of GBP 50 for VPS

Commissions for Single Stocks

There is a minimum commission for single stock trades but no maximum commission and no volume discounts

No Emergency Stop Loss

There is no way to automatically liquidate your positions once your account balance reaches a predetermined threshold

8000+

International Shares

90+

Currency Pairs

4

Cryptocurrency

(Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, and Ripple)

Products & Fees

4.6

IG provides access to a wide variety of financial markets - including forex, stock indices, individual equities, stock sectors, commodities, cryptocurrencies, bonds and interest rates - via spread betting, CFDs, shares and more. IG provides some of the lowest spreads in the industry, especially for Forex traders who are trading larger monthly volumes through IG's Forex Direct [Direct Market Access (DMA)] platform - which offers narrower spreads plus a commission. There is a spread and minimum commission for single stocks but no maximum commission. This can get expensive if you trade a lot of single stocks. There are no charges for normal withdrawals or terminating an account. Inactivity fees only kick in after an account has been idle for two years.

Spreads can vary based on volatility. The content provided herein is for informational purposes only, and expressly does not purport to provide investment advice or recommend in any form or manner any particular investment product. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, Contracts for Difference (CFDs) are high risk investments that are structured as leveraged products where your losses can exceed your investment. CFDs are highly speculative and carry a significant risk of loss to some or all of your capital. This may occur rapidly due to the use of leverage. For example, if prices move against you, you may be required to make additional payments (beyond your initial investment) to keep any trades open. CFDs have been the subject of increasing scrutiny, and new regulations governing CFDs recently went into effect. CFD trading may not be appropriate for everyone. You should fully understand the risks and seek independent professional advice before deciding whether to start CFD trading, including about the new regulations.

Trust

3.9

If there's one area where IG suffered slightly in our ratings it was with trust. It's worth noting, however, that most of the reason for this was the company's lack of compensation above and beyond what's required by regulators in the event of a default by IG. However, while IG does not provide additional deposit insurance, it does take steps to ensure client funds are not comingled with corporate funds - ensuring that client money and assets are protected in the unlikely event that IG becomes insolvent - by holding those funds in segregated accounts at regulated banks. The Gambling Commission classifies the way IG holds client money as "high protection".

What you need to know

IG is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and follows the strict regulatory requirements, known as the client money and client assets rules (found in the Client Assets Sourcebook - CASS) outlined by the FCA. Its Digital 100s (binary options) business is also regulated by the Gambling Commission in Great Britain.

Special Features

3.0

IG gives you the flexibility to automate your trading and bypass IG and go directly to the market makers and even use your own, or a third party, trading platform. We are impressed with the number of trading platforms and tools that are available to individual and institutional traders (asset managers and introducing brokers) alike. In fact, their only negative mark was because they require a minimum account balance of GBP 5,000 to access its Virtual Private Servers (VPS) for free (Traders often use a VPS to run automated trading algorithms). Otherwise, access to the VPS costs account holders GBP 50 per month.

Direct Market Access

Bypass IG and trade directly with market makers

ProRealTime Trading Platform

Create, back test and automate your trading strategies

Algorithmic Trading

Automate your entries and exits with VWAP and TWAP algorithms

Trade via an API

Use your own front-end platform and IG's trading technology

What you need to know

Depending on the functionality you are looking for you may need to choose among different trading platforms. If you're looking for direct market access (DMA) the L2 Dealer platform is for you. If you're looking for backtesting and trade automation the ProRealTime platform may be more ideal.

Desktop Experience

4.5

IG scored very well in the Desktop Experience category. Their browser-based trading platform is stable and fully customizable. It provides everything from news alerts and third-party trading signals to watchlists and dynamic charts. The amount of information you can apply to the charts - indicators, drawings, economic events and more - while maintaining a clean, organized layout (even when toggling back and forth between chart time frames and single- and multi-chart layouts) is perhaps the most impressive aspect of the platform. Some traders may gravitate toward IG's MT4 charting package or one of the other advanced charting packages for the special features they offer. But most traders are going to find everything they need in IG's online, browser-based trading platform.

Pros

Everything in the online trading platform is customizable - from the color of the platform to the positioning and number of charting, news and portfolio windows. You can also trade forex, indices, individual shares, commodities, cryptocurrencies, ETFs and bonds and rates all within the same platform. Integrated trading signals from Autochartist and PIA-First, news updates from Reuters and customizable trade alerts all help keep you engaged and informed.

Cons

Launching the online trading platform is a multi-step process. Traders must first log into your account and then choose which platform you would like to launch from the dashboard.

Mobile Experience

4.6

The IG mobile app includes most of the functionality available in the desktop application. Traders can access IG's trading instruments, complex order types and account details, trading signals, and charting (complete with trading indicators and drawing tools) from the Android or iPhone apps. The app has a customizable layout so that a client's default opening screen can be focused on the information they want to see first. The iPhone app includes fingerprint security but the Android version does not.

Pros

The mobile app includes all of the same functionality clients can use in the desktop version to analyze and research trading opportunities. Clients can use advanced order types, track their accounts and receive trading alerts. The dynamic charts can also be expanded to full screen to provide better clarity during the technical analysis process. Clients can also easily toggle back and forth between accounts if they have more than one.

Cons

Although the app includes fingerprint security in the iPhone version, there is otherwise no added security beyond the login password. We would like to see the app include customizable, automatic sign-out and verification of login from another device.

Customer Support

3.8

IG customer support provides a robust network of agents to assist clients. Clients can contact customer support via phone, email, live chat or Twitter. IG also provides a dedicated team to offer one-to-one guidance to new clients. The company also maintains a robust FAQ database and investor community where clients can interact with and support each other. IG's only negative? No in-person support is available.

What you need to know

Customer service is available 24 hours a day from 8am Saturday to 10pm Friday. In our experience, response times via each of these customer service channels was prompt, knowledgeable and courteous. The FAQ section covers a wide variety of topics and has an excellent search engine. The IG Community provides a forum to discuss trading strategies, ask for help and learn about the various features of IG's trading platforms. While anyone can browse the forum, you must have a live account to post in the forum. Demo account holders may not post.

Research & Insights

5.0

IG scored high in the research category. The platform includes real-time news feeds, calendars, and advanced data analytics. It also provides insight into what is happening on the IG trading floor and what other IG clients are trading in their own accounts.

IG Client Sentiment

Know what other clients are trading.

IG View

News reports from IG's analyst team

IG Squawk

Twitter feed of market news from the IG trading floor

Market Screener

Screen for stocks based on fundamental criteria

Morning Call

Daily email with news and analysis

Trading Diary

Note-taking platform to track progress and lessons learned

Pros

IG provides a wide range of analytics, research and tools. We especially liked the client sentiment tool and the dynamic charts. The economic calendar was easy to use, integrated into the trading platform, and included expectations, actual results, currencies affected, and historical data. Research from IG's analysts was timely and informative.

Cons

The economic calendar provides timely data for the current trading day, but it lacks the ability to go forward or backward in time to see what is coming in the future or what has happened in the past. The pop-up data windows that appear when you click on a specific economic event are also broken.

Education

5.0

IG's education via its IG Academy is well organized and comprehensive. It is even available in a mobile app so you can take your education with you. The ongoing webinars and commentary incorporate the trading platform, which will help investors to become more proficient with its use.

Mobile App

Trading Education On-The-Go

(Watch videos, read lessons, take quizzes)

IG Academy

Master Various Trading Concepts

(Collection of predefined courses and ongoing live training sessions)

Course Tracking

Track What You Still Need to Learn

(Keep progressing and mark off lessons completed)

What you need to know

The nine trading courses available emphasize spread betting and CFDs. But the courses on technical analysis, trading psychology, understanding risk and reward, etc. are applicable regardless of the market you are trading.

Bottom Line

IG scored high marks across the board in our analysis. They offer a broad array of trading platforms, including desktop, browser-based and mobile applications that we felt would appeal to both new traders and experienced traders alike. New traders will find the tools and educational opportunities necessary to get started. Seasoned traders will appreciate the flexible, customizable trading platforms and low trading costs. The firm covers a broad array of financial markets including Forex, stock indices, individual equities, stock sectors, commodities, cryptocurrencies, bonds and interest rates. We would have preferred at least the option to talk to a representative in person, but otherwise their customer support was professional and courteous. The firm's selection of research, news and analytics was impressive.

• Co-founder of Learning Markets, LLC, a leading creator of financial content, analysis, education and tools

• Author of four books on investing and portfolio strategies published by McGraw Hill

Experience

John has worked in the capital markets and private equity for most of his career—including investing, writing, education and money management. John has a B.S. in Business Administration from Utah Valley University and completed the PLD at Harvard Business School. John is the coauthor of three books published by McGraw Hill on investing and portfolio management. As a co-founder of Learning Markets, LLC, John has developed financial education used by thousands of brokerage clients to become better investors. His firm also develops professional-grade stock screening and analytical tools for individual investors.

Education

John earned his bachelor's degree in accounting and business management at Utah Valley University.

Professional Designations

John is a Charted Financial Analyst (CFA) and a Chartered Market Technician (CMT).

Quote from John

"Individual investors have goals and objectives beyond wealth accumulation. Investing is only one tool they use to achieve truly great things in their life. I am passionate about helping investors because their success means more than just a larger account balance."

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